My blog has become a rather eclectic mix of subject matter, so I thought it was about time I threw a movie review in. Except it’s not really a movie review, because that would require critical analysis and that is something I refuse to do when it comes to Sex and the City. Everyone deserves a guilty pleasure in life and this is mine.

In the trailer Lily (Charlotte’s daughter) asks “Like in Jasmine and Aladdin?” to which Carrie replies “Yes sweetie, but with cocktails” and that is exactly what SATC2 is. A fairytale. Disney for adults. And it always has been. The criticism that it’s misplaced decadence in a time of frugality misses the point. For most of us Sex and the City has always been like window shopping, looking at all the things we can never hope to afford, recession or no recession. The first shot of Carrie’s gorgeous gold glitter Louboutin’s received an intake of breath and a sense of longing. Let’s face it, until she married Big even Carrie’s wardrobe and credit card abuse was enough to leave her bankrupt before the end of the first series. Unlike her three co-stars with believably affluent jobs and/or lives, as a newspaper columnist she wasn’t earning enough to keep herself in the manner to which she was accustomed.

SATC has never lived in reality. This sequel may not have had quite the heart wrenching scenes of the first one, but there was comedy. And, for some, echoes of reality — with amazing and sometimes “interesting” outfits. The women might now be in their forties and fifties, but having been a single girl for pretty much all of my twenties I have seen friends struggle with the different challenges in this movie; settling down to marriage, juggling children and coming to hate a job they once loved. I found the drama of the jilted bride in the first movie much further removed from real life than than Samantha trying to deal with menopause in the second.

For over two hours I was whisked away on a fabulous daydream. I giggled. I looked on in awe. And, without apology, I enjoyed it. We let children watch Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. Movies about two young impressionable girls, asleep, powerless, waiting for the kiss of their one true love, who will then whisk them away, with no consultation, to a happily ever after? I think they’re far more ripe for scrutiny than a romp in Abu Dhabi in fabulous outfits, where a rich man has paid for a mere week away, on Samantha’s terms, before they return to their “real” lives in New York.

Sex and the City has been the voice of many taboos. It’s also been shallow and decadent. This film isn’t made for a critical audience. Hate Sex and the City? Well I can say without a shadow of a doubt you shouldn’t waste your time and money seeing this film. Love Sex and the City? Sit back and enjoy the ride.